Play
by Amalia Autumn
Summary: AU. Count to ten, run and hide, and pray to God the sun will rise. Count to ten, run and hide, and pray to God that you will not die.
1. Run and Hide

**Continental Calendar:**

_July 14th, 1908_

* * *

Just as the sun lowered past the mountains on the horizon, he ran.

He didn't know where he was going, or why he was even running in the first place, but his emotions were currently ruling him, a usually logical young boy. Tears he did not feel were falling from his eyes, and flying behind him as he gained speed and practically flew past the markets, the streets, and even people. He bumped into a few but nevertheless he did not stop running, even when people swore or shouted at him to watch where he was going.

Aimlessly, blindly, he turned several corners, went down a few alleyways, crossed dozens of streets, and then, somewhere in the back of his mind, he realized the farther he went, the less people and buildings there were.

And yet he continued running. He didn't care.

The woman that haunted him flashed through his mind repeatedly, driving him mad and making him so desperate to run from her--the memory of her pale, lifeless body.

He ran; he continued running and running--until he couldn't see her anymore. When he stopped, he ended up collapsing onto his knees, chest heaving and eyes red from tears already shed.

His tiny hands weakly grasped the dark yellow sand beneath him. He sobbed a few more dry sobs, and then he was silent. The only sound that emerged was a vicious wind, blowing sand into his eyes.

"Dammit!" he knew it was bad to swear, but nevertheless he did so anyway, raising both hands to his eyes and viciously rubbing them, trying to quell the terrible sting. It was then he realized his hands were in the sand, and his eyes burned more than before. He used his clean arms to rub the sting away.

Just when he regained sight, he looked around, blinking several times due to the sand still etched into his vision. What he saw was unusual. Empty buildings with no windows and no doors--the paint was peeling on the walls, and there was a low humming sound.

It was then he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He froze suddenly, feeling very cold.

_One..._

Quickly, he shut his eyes and covered his ears, trying so hard not to be scared. Where was he?

_Two..._

"Go away!" he yelled at nothing in particular, "Leave me alone!"

_Three..._

"I mean it!" he tried to sound braver than he felt, and he rose to his feet and uncovered his ears.

_Four..._

His eyes flew open and he ran again, further into the tattered ruins of wherever he was.

_Five..._

He didn't dare look behind him, he was too scared to. For some reason, he was too scared to.

_Six..._

Why was he scared? He was angry with himself, feeling stupid for being scared of an abandoned town, feeling stupid for running, but he didn't stop. Something in his gut was telling him not to.

_Seven..._

Although he didn't hear footsteps behind him, he ran faster and faster.

_Eight..._

And then, he turned and headed straight into a building, ran until he saw an old mahogany table, not dusted for ages.

_Nine..._

He turned the table sideways, and ducked behind the table, curling up into a ball and covering his eyes and ears again.

_Ten!_

He tried to be as quiet as possible. For some reason he felt as if something was looming over him.

_Ready or not..._

And then, he felt the hand slam onto his shoulder. His eyes widened, but it was too late.

The last thing he heard was a low rasp, a hiss, similar to a snake,

"_**You're it.**_"

_...Here I come!!_

_

* * *

_

Once upon a time, there was a bustling, peaceful city named Xerxes.

_It had everything everyone wanted: food, __job opportunities__, __residential areas__and places of amusement or interest. There was something in Xerxes for everyone._

_And one night, in just one night, the entire population of Xerxes disappeared._

_Everyone was baffled; no one could explain why. Then, rumors began in the small towns, then spread to the bigger cities (though the bigger cities laughed at the rumor)._

_It was _them.

_The four major demons of Amestrian and Xingian folklore._

_**The Heartless**__, which took the form of a wrinkly old man, the demon that ripped out the hearts of mortals._

_**The Soul Reaper**__, which took the form of a young brunette woman with ivory skin and coal-black eyes, the demon that seduced her way to your soul._

_**The Face Stealer**__, which could vary in forms, from the tiniest insect to the most innocent child, the demon that could steal your face._

_And then, the __**Oni**__, which took the form of an ogre. The most evil of all demons._

_Now, Xerxes lies abandoned, the proclaimed 'haunted' border between Amestris and Xing. It's quite the magnet for children, of both Amestrian and Xingian blood, who dared to explore the abandoned remains, and perhaps even play games there. Some children disappear, which causes quite some tension among the Xingians and the Amestrians. However, there is no time for war--instead they must focus on finding the lost children._

_That is if the four demons have not found them first._

**If you think you've heard of the Face Stealer before, you have. That is, if you've watched Avatar. XD Many, many thanks to beta reader Lychee Green Tea, who (duh) edited this. **


	2. Pray to God That He's All Right

**My Lord, I haven't updated in forever. XD Terribly sorry. I'm going through a rough time my friends, but I'll try to update as much as possible. Also, do you have any old works I've posted that you liked and wanted me to continue on? Well, you can ask in your review, if you wish to. Enjoy the update. Much thanks to beta Lychee Green Tea, of course.**

--

**The Country of Xing, **_July 15th, 1908_  
**Alphonse Elric: **_Eight years old_  
**Winry Rockbell: **_Nine years old_

--

Alphonse stirred when he heard distant mumbles down the hall from the room in which he rested in. Groggily, Alphonse looked blindly around the room, towards the huge grandfather clock on the other side, by some other vacant bed. He couldn't see the time well, for his vision was blurry. Snorting, Al shrugged and rolled over, trying to return to his peaceful slumber. They would probably wake him up when breakfast was ready anyway...

The next thing he knew, someone was shaking him violently.

"Al! Wake up quick!" The voice of Winry Rockbell was whispering but shenevertheless spoke quickly andfrantically.

"Wake up! Miss Izumi's talking to the Xingian police!"

_Police?_

Now Al was wide awake, and the instant he sat up he noticed the bed across the room was empty. The bed that belonged to his older brother, Edward.

"Did Brother come home?" Al was already out of bed and throwing on a decent shirt and pants.

Winry shook her head, her shoulder-length pale blonde hair swishing.

"No. Miss Izumi's talking to the police--they said they didn't find him after he ran off!"

"W--wha...?" Al froze, turning to his brother's bed, hoping somehow thathis brother's body would magically appear--his sleeping form stretched out like a cat, his hair all tousled and his stomach protruding outwards. But no, Ed did not magically appear and Alphonse desperately wished at that moment magic was real.

His mind began racing with pessimistic, dark thoughts: what if someone kidnapped his brother? What if Ed got lost? What if he ran head-on into a road and got run over by a car, or gotmugged by homeless men? What if the Royal Palace mistook him for a servant they had, or worse, royalty? What if that happened and Ed was absolutely forbidden to see him again?

"That idiot!" Winry was clearly trying not to cry, but tears were still streaming down her pudgy face."He's never been here! He _knew _he was going to get lost without Miss Izumi or Mister Sig with him!!"

"Where could he have went...?" Al stated blankly, feeling an empty void where his heart was. There was something stuck in his throat, or at least it seemed that way, and Al felt he was losing hisbreath too quickly,too easily now.

"It's all my fault," Al didn't fight the huge tears blurring his vision. "I shouldn't have yelled at him! I shouldn't have mentioned anything about--!"

"There's no time for that, dummy!" Winry shook her head, tugging at his arm. "Now c'mon, we have to talk to Miss Izumi!"

The two children scurried down the stairs (Alphonse stumbling several times in the process), and then ran headfirst into the stomach of Izumi Curtis once they turned into the kitchen.

Thankfully, she didn't start coughing like she usually did, but she still looked down at the two sternly.

"What are you two doing up so early when you stood up so late?!" Shedemanded.

"Miss Izumi..." Winry's carefully placed pout turned into a frown, and she began bawling right there, "...is Ed dead? I don't want him to die..."

Izumi visibly softened, and held Winry delicately in her arms.

"No, of course not," she tried to soothe her, "he's a strong boy, Winry, I'm sure he's fine."

Alphonse struggled to keep his composure. He didn't want to cry; Ed always said it was babyish or kiddy. Since Ed wasn't here and Winry was in tears, Al decided _he_ would have to be the strong one.

But who knew strength was so hard to hold? His brother, his other half, was missing. His best friend was completely broken, and he'd never seen Izumi and Sig with such worried expressions on their faces.

Where was his brother? Al shut his eyes tightly, even when Izumi reached for him. Why did Ed have to run off like that?

_Brother...where are you?_

To think, the one time Al needed his brother the most was when his brother disappeared on him. Amazing how he just took him for granted 'til now--when Ed was truly needed.

"Alphonse!"

Al's eyes snapped open, and the mental image (although foggy) of his brother dissipated as Izumi came into view.

He swallowed heavily. Izumi's arms were wide open; behind her was her husband, Sig, who was now comforting a still sobbing Winry.

"You don't have to hold back," Izumi smiled a gentle smile, though her expression was stern once more.

Normally, Alphonse would've leapt into his caretaker's arms and sobbed his little heart out.

But no. This was for Ed. He had to be strong.

"I'm sure my brother's all right," he said evenly.


End file.
